Increased melatonin may help those on blood pressure meds get some sleep

Posted October 9, 2012

A study conducted at the Clinical and Translational Research Center at Brigham and Women’s Hospital reports that melatonin supplements may help aid insomnia for people who take beta-blockers to treat high blood pressure.

Beta-blockers, also referred to as beta-adrenergic blocking agents, offset the effects of epinephrine, the hormone also known as adrenaline, so the heart can beat at a slower pace and help reduce blood pressure. According to the study, which was published in the journal sleep, nearly 22 million Americans regularly take beta-blockers. One of the side effects is a suppression of endogenous nighttime melatonin secretion, which is a suspected reason for the insomnia that many people who take beta-blockers experience.

The small study consisted of 16 hypertensive patients from 45 to 64 years old, nine of whom were women. The patients started out with a four-day in-laboratory polysomnography recording of their sleep patterns. After, the patients were randomly assigned a three-week regimen of either a melatonin supplement or a placebo.

A subsequent polysomnography revealed that patients who took the melatonin supplement had a greater sleep time of nearly 36 minutes, an increased sleep efficiency (time spent asleep while in bed) as well as a reduction of sleep onset latency (time it takes to fall asleep). The study also revealed that subjects taking melotonin also were in stage two sleep for 41 minutes longer than control patients.

“Although the sample size [in this study] is small, the results are compelling. If real-world experience parallels [these] lab results, such changes could make a significant clinical impact for these patients,” Michael Yurcheshen, M.D. told Health Magazine.

You can get your melatonin and a good night’s sleep with a CalMax Sleep supplement from Dr. Newton’s Naturals. It’s fortified with magnesium, which helps soothe the muscles and maintain a steady heartbeat throughout the night.